Mark Jindrak

Mark Jindrak
Ring name(s)	Marco Corleone Mark Jindrak
Billed height	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)[1]
Billed weight	265 lb (120 kg)[2]
Born	June 26, 1977 (1977-06-26) (age 34) Auburn, New York[1]
Resides	Mexico[3]
Billed from	Atlanta, Georgia[2]
Trained by	Paul Orndorff[4]
Debut	1999[4]

Mark Robert Jindrak (born June 26, 1977) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). He currently wrestles on the independent circuit under his real name and competed for the for Mexican promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) under the ring name Marco Corleone for 3 years until jumping to rival promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) in March 2009. He worked for the company for a year, before being released and joining Mexican promotion Perros del Mal.

Professional wrestling career

World Championship Wrestling (2000–2001)

Jindrak trained in the WCW Power Plant under Paul Orndorff.^[4] He was promoted to the main WCW roster in June 2000 under the Vince Russo era where he formed a tag team with fellow Power Plant graduate Sean O'Haire. In August 2000, Jindrak and O'Haire helped form the Natural Born Thrillers with Mike Sanders, Shawn Stasiak, Chuck Palumbo, Johnny "The Bull" Stamboli, and Reno.^[4] They were briefly "coached" by Kevin Nash.^[4]

In September 2000, Jindrak won the WCW World Tag Team Championship with O'Haire for the first time, despite being relatively new in the business. The pair would win WCW Tag team gold one more time before splitting in early January 2001 when Jindrak would begin teaming with Stasiak instead. The team was short lived, as Stasiak went on to pick up the managerial service of Stacy Keibler and Jindrak disappeared.

World Wrestling Entertainment (2001–2005)

After the World Wrestling Federation purchased WCW in March 2001, Jindrak came into the company in July 2001 as part of The Alliance that invaded the WWF roster. Jindrak wrestled in dark matches and at house shows throughout July. His debut and only televised match was on the July 28, 2001 episode of Jakked, defeating Jerry Lynn.

In late August of that year Mark Jindrak was sent to the Heartland Wrestling Association. There he was a member of Team WCW along with Mike Sanders, Johnny The Bull, Reno, Jason Jett, Lash LaRoux, Shannon Moore, Evan Karagias, Kwee Wee, Elix Skipper and Jamie Knoble. In October 2001 Jindrak was moved to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) for training until March 2002 when he suffered a knee injury. Jindrak returned to OVW in July 2002. He also returned to WWE on the October 13, 2002 episode Sunday Night Heat defeating Justin Credible. He made a few more appearances on Heat in late 2002, defeating wrestlers such as Justin Credible, Raven, Mike Owens, and Stevie Richards, until Jindrak suffered another injury, this time an ankle injury. Jindrak returned to OVW in March, 2003. He soon joined Kenny Bolin's "Bolin Services" stable and teamed with Garrison Cade.

Jindrak was soon called up by WWE. He made his Raw debut on July 7, 2003 as a face where he was defeated by Chris Jericho. He then formed a tag team with Garrison Cade on the Raw brand. The team feuded with teams the like of La Résistance, Evolution, and The Dudley Boyz. The team soon separated when Jindrak was drafted to SmackDown! on March 22, 2004.

He first appeared on SmackDown!'s sister show Velocity where he adopted a gimmick of an egotistical, narcissistic heel obsessed with his own physique (similar to Lex Luger), calling himself "The Reflection of Perfection" and standing in front of a mirror to admire himself. On April 8, 2004 he would gain Theodore Long as a manager for a brief period until the pair split in July 2004 when Long turned face and became the general manager of SmackDown! and Jindrak remained mostly on Velocity.

In September 2004, Jindrak aligned himself with Kurt Angle and Luther Reigns, whom he helped take down and shave Big Show bald during the fifth anniversary episode of SmackDown!. Jindrak was in the 2005 Royal Rumble match, entering at number 22, but was eliminated by Kane. Jindrak and Reigns continued to serve as Kurt Angle's proteges and also his bodyguards until February, 2005 when Jindrak and Reigns split from Angle to continue their own feud with The Undertaker.

Jindrak continued to team with Reigns until early March, 2005. The pair began to have a falling out, most notably after Jindrak submitted to a triangle choke, losing a "Double Jeopardy" handicap match on the February 24, 2005 episode of SmackDown! in Philadelphia to The Undertaker. The following week Jindrak and Reigns lost a tag team title match to Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio, and Jindrak turned face once again after getting into a fight with Reigns and knocking him out with a left hook. The next week on SmackDown! on March 10, 2005, Jindrak defeated Reigns with that same left hook.

After this, Jindrak became a lower card star performing on WWE Velocity, and only appearing on SmackDown! to job for other wrestlers, portraying both a face and heel character. On the May 28, 2005 episode of Velocity Jindrak faced Orlando Jordan for the United States Championship, however Jindrak lost after Jordan hit him with a blackout. Jindrak's last match as a SmackDown! superstar was on the June 18th episode of Velocity in a losing effort to Rene Dupree, even though he had a good showing in most of the match.

On June 30, 2005, Jindrak became one of the last minute trades in the 2005 WWE Draft, which saw him jump from SmackDown! back to Raw. Jindrak only had one match with the Raw brand, where René Duprée forced him to submit to a cobra clutch. Jindrak was released from his WWE contract shortly thereafter on July 5, 2005.

Japan (2006)

Jindrak toured New Japan Pro Wrestling in 2006, where he was primarily used as a low-carder. Jindrak did, however, pick up a surprise win over long-time veteran Osamu Nishimura during the tour.

Mark Jindrak was also involved with fellow WWE alumni Matt Morgan. The pair appeared in a short-lived online reality show which was canceled in early 2006 for an unknown reason. Both men later showed up in the Japanese promotion HUSTLE, wrestling as the tag team of Sodom (Jindrak) and Gomorrah (Morgan).

Mexico (2006–present)

In late 2006, Jindrak began working for the Mexican promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre under the name Marco Corleone. He took the name "Corleone" from the film The Godfather.^[3] His gimmick has Italian traits, as a result of joining the promotion with Johnny Stamboli, who was using an Italian gimmick at the time.^[3] Initially a rudo (heel), he turned into a technico (face) due to crowd support.^[3] It was announced in 2008 that Jindrak has been officially banned from performing at wrestling shows in Tijuana, Mexico for a year due to pulling down the tights of his opponent during a match.^[5]

On March 15, 2009, Jindrak, under his Marco Corleone ring name, made a surprise jump from CMLL to AAA, appearing as a surprise corner man for Vampiro during AAA's 2009 Rey de Reyes show. Corleone helped Vampiro win the match against AAA's top heel Konnan.^[6] On March 22, 2010, AAA released Jindrak.^[7] Corleone later stated that he had initially only signed a one-year contract with AAA and had declined to re-sign.^[8]

On April 11, 2010, Mexican promotion Perros del Mal announced that they had signed Jindrak, still using the ring name Marco Corleone, to a contract.^[9]

Lucha Libre USA (2010)

Corleone is currently competing on MTV's new lucha libre show, Lucha Libre USA. He became involved with the promotion shortly after leaving AAA in early 2010, and was involved in finding and signing wrestlers for the show.^[8][10]

Other media

Due to his success in Mexican promotions, Jindrak has appeared on several Mexican game shows, soap operas, and TV shows, and been featured on the covers of magazines.^[3] He was also named "Best Body in Mexico".^[3] He also wrote a book in Spanish entitled Marco Corleone: las primera luchas de mi vida (Marco Corleon: the first fights of my life) for children, to help them cope with bullying in schools.^[3] Jindrak tried out for the film Remember the Titans, and was offered a role as a football player. As he was in training at the WCW Power Plant at the time however, he turned the role down.^[11]

Personal life

Jindrak has a degree in marketing.^[1] Jindrak played basketball for the Keuka College's Storm in Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association.^[4] Jindrak had the highest vertical leap in WWE history, and his personal best is over 40 inches (100 cm).^[11]

Jindrak resides in Mexico with his girlfriend.^[3] Jindrak's father is of German descent and his mother is of Italian descent.^[3]

In wrestling

• Finishing moves
  • Air Corleone (Running crossbody to a cornered opponent)^[12]
  • Left-handed knockout hook
  • Mark of Excellence (Belly to back side slam)

• Signature moves
  • Argentine neckbreaker
  • Belly to back suplex, sometimes from the middle rope
  • Chokeslam – Japan
  • DDT
  • Diving leg drop
  • Double underhook powerbomb
  • Dropkick
  • Elevated powerbomb
  • Military press slam
  • Diving crossbody
  • Tilt-a-whirl mat slam
  • Vertical suplex dropped into an implant DDT

• With Garrison Cade
  • Straight-Shooter (Cade lifts the opponent into a bearhug followed by Jindrak hitting a dropkick to the opponent, setting up a spinebuster by Cade)

• Nicknames
  • "The Basket Case" Mark Jindrak
  • "The Reflection of Perfection" Mark Jindrak
  • "The Italian Eagle" Marco Corleone

• Managers
  • Theodore Long
  • Kevin Nash
  • Kenny Bolin
  • Mima Shimoda (While teaming with Kenzo Suzuki)
  • Solid

Championships and accomplishments

• CLAW Pro Wrestling
  • North American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time)

• Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
  • Suzuki Cup (2007) – with Kensuke Sasaki & Ultimo Dragon^[13]

• Independent Wrestling League
  • IWL Intercontinental Championship (1 time)^[14]

• International Wrestling Revolution Group
  • Copa Higher Power Tournament Winner (2006)^[15]

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI ranked him #119 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2001^[16]

• World Championship Wrestling
  • WCW World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Sean O'Haire^[17]

Luchas de apuestas record

See also: Luchas de apuestas

Wager	Winner	Loser	Location	Date	Notes
Hair	Shocker and Universo 2000	Marco Corelone & Kenzo Suzuki	Mexico City, Mexico	December 15, 2006
Hair	Marco Corleone	Universo 2000	Mexico City, Mexico	March 30, 2007
Hair	Marco Corleone	Lizmark, Jr.	Mexico City, Mexico	October 17, 2008

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-14). "Former WWE star resurrected with Corleone character in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRQb5dS0. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "PWI Official Ratings". The Pro Wrestling Illustrated (London Publishing): p. 145. February 2009. Vol 30, Nr. 2 2009. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i} Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-23). "Corleone character a big hit for Jindrak in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRR8qklM. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 
4. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-23). "Corleone character a big hit for Jindrak in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 2. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRRqGuvW. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 
5. ^ Wrestling News Center: Mark Jindrak Banned From Tijuana For Pulling The Tights
6. ^ "Resultados de Rey de Reyes-AAA (16 marzo 2008) Elecktroshock nuevo Rey de Reyes. Juventud Guerrera y Marco Corleone las sorpresas. Wagner se presenta en AAA para retar al Mesías." (in Spanish). SuperLucha.net. 2009-03-15. http://superluchas.net/?p=19179. Retrieved 2009-03-16. 
7. ^ "Marco Corleone liberado" (in Spanish). Asistencia Asesoría y Administración. 2010-03-22. http://www.luchalibreaaa.com/marcocorleonereleased.html. Retrieved 2010-03-28. 
8. ^ ^{a b} Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-14). "Former WWE star resurrected with Corleone character in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 2. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRQ303dY. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 
9. ^ "Latin Lover será un Perro del Mal" (in Spanish). Record.com.mx. 2010-04-11. http://www.record.com.mx/tmf/latin-lover-sera-un-perro-del-mal-11042010.html. Retrieved 2010-04-12. ^{[dead link]}
10. ^ Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-14). "Former WWE star resurrected with Corleone character in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 3. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRQLkaPP. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 
11. ^ ^{a b} Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-23). "Corleone character a big hit for Jindrak in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 4. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRSYmBBe. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 
12. ^ PWI StaffPWI Staff (August, 2008). "Pro Wrestling Illustrated 500 – 2008: 172 Marco Corleone". Pro Wrestling Illustrated (Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, USA: Sports and Entertainment publications LLC): p. 90. October 2008. 
13. ^ http://www.purolove.com/misc/kensuke/profiles/kensukesasaki.php
14. ^ "IWL 10/16/2010 results" (in German). Cagematch. http://www.cagematch.de/?id=1&nr=56866. Retrieved 2010-10-19. 
15. ^ http://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=241&view=turniere#turniere
16. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 – 2001". Wrestling Information Archive. http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwi50001.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-01. 
17. ^ Varsallone, Jim (2010-07-23). "Corleone character a big hit for Jindrak in Mexico". The Miami Herald. p. 3. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. http://www.webcitation.org/5rRSB6jdi. Retrieved 2010-07-23. 

External links

Professional wrestling portal

• Grapple List: Mark Jindrak Profile
• Official MySpace Profile
• AAA Official page coverage

Persondata
Name	Jindrak, Mark
Alternative names	Corleone, Marco; Sodom
Short description	professional wrestler
Date of birth	June 26, 1977
Place of birth	Auburn, New York
Date of death
Place of death